Piece of Garment and System for Sealingly Joining Pieces of Garment

ABSTRACT

The invention relates to an item of clothing ( 1 ), in particular a glove ( 2 ), a shoe or headwear, comprising at least one material layer ( 4 ), and the at least one material layer ( 4 ) is formed by a sealing, in particular fluid-tight functional layer ( 6 ), and having in particular a tubular shaft ( 15 ) with an attachment ( 16 ), which attachment ( 16 ) can be coupled with a specifically tubular connecting piece ( 17 ) of another item of clothing ( 3 ) to form a sealed connection preventing penetration by foreign substances into an interior ( 5, 26 ). The attachment ( 16 ) is disposed on an external face ( 23 ) or an internal face of the shaft ( 15 ) and formed by a cuff ( 18 ) extending along the shaft ( 15 ) and a collar ( 19 ) covering at least certain regions of the latter in a closed position, and the cuff ( 18 ) and the collar ( 19 ) are made from a sealing, in particular fluid-tight material and the cuff ( 18 ) and/or the collar ( 19 ) are mounted on the shaft ( 15 ) by means of at least one fixing element ( 21 ) in such a way that the functional layer ( 6 ) is not perforated.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This is a national phase application of PCT Patent Application No. PCT/AT2005/000309, filed Aug. 3, 2005 which claims priority from German Application No. 20 2004 012 642.7 DE, filed Aug. 12, 2004. The disclosure of each such application is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety where appropriate for teachings of additional or alternative details, features, and/or technical background, and priority is asserted from each.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The invention relates to an item of clothing, in particular a glove, a shoe or a head covering, of the type outlined in the introductory parts of claims 1 and 2, as well as a system for providing a fluid-tight connection between two items of clothing which can be worn on a body and can be so adjacent to one another, for example a glove and sleeve or a shoe and trouser leg.

Items of clothing such as gloves or shoes are known from the prior art, which are at least partially made from waterproof material in order to protect an interior surrounded by the item of clothing from undesirable ingress by fluid. Connecting mechanisms for providing a fluid-tight coupling between two items of clothing are also known from the prior art.

Utility model DE 78 19 843 U1, for example, discloses a glove, in particular for motorcyclists, which has a collar surrounding the wrist of a user, and the collar is surrounded by another, outer collar. In order to couple this glove with a sleeve of another item of clothing, the outer collar is pulled over the sleeve part, and a fluid penetrating the interior between the inner and outer collar can be directed away through a cut-out or orifice provided in the outer collar.

The disadvantage of a glove of this design is that moisture can be prevented from penetrating the sleeve only when the hand and the arm are in a certain angled position—as is the case when steering a motor cycle—but in the event of more intensive contact of the fluid with the entire sleeve and hand region and if the arm changes position in an undefined manner, water is able to penetrate the interior via the connecting region without any difficulty. Another problem encountered with a glove of this type is that if there is a stitched connection between the collar and the glove, there is not an adequate seal against penetration by liquid in this connecting region unless additional sealing elements are used, such as a sealing tape adhered or welded above the stitched seam, because the waterproof functional layer is perforated due to the stitching.

Patent specification DE 196 01 561 C1 discloses a waterproof glove, which has a shaft built onto an outer material and a waterproof collar tube extending underneath the shaft. Provided between the shaft of the collar tube is a sleeve receiving groove, in which the bottom end region of a sleeve of an item of clothing worn by the user of the glove can be inserted. A groove base disposed in the region of a collar bottom edge is sealed to prevent the passage of any water which might be disposed in the sleeve receiving groove to the interior of the glove, and a top length of the collar tube is dimensioned so that when the hand wearing the glove is positioned so that water can collect in the sleeve receiving groove, water disposed in the sleeve groove is not able to reach the collar top edge.

The disadvantage of a glove of this type is that water is able to get into the sleeve receiving groove and this water is able to rise as far as a collar top edge of the collar tube lying on the internal face of the sleeve. If the hand and the arm of a user wearing a glove of this type is fully immersed in water, there is no guarantee that liquid can be prevented from getting into the interior of the sleeve or the glove. Especially in the event of changing and sudden arm movements by a user under water, as would be the case during a diving or swimming movement, water is likely to get into the glove and sleeve interior with a glove of this design. A glove of this type is therefore not suitable for applications in which the user needs a large freedom of movement or flexibility of the arms whilst simultaneously in intensive contact with liquid.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Generally speaking, the disadvantage of items of clothing such as gloves known from the prior art which can be coupled with other items of clothing and which are sealed to protect against ingress by a foreign substance is that either they are uncomfortable to wear and permit only a limited freedom of movement due to the use of mechanical connecting mechanisms of a large and complicated construction, for example in the form of threaded, catch or snap-in connections of two connecting rings with a sealing element inserted in between, or the measures taken in some applications to prevent penetration by fluid are not as reliable as they should be if the connecting region is made from thin and flexible material layers, such as textile fabrics, laminates, membranes, etc.

Above all for persons and staff working with water, there is a need for items of clothing which can be coupled with one another which are very comfortable to wear and have excellent tactile properties on the one hand, and which ensure a high level of protection against ingress by water in conjunction with other items of clothing on the other hand. Ingress by water must be prevented because a person who unintentionally finds himself in water is also at high risk of drowning because direct water contact with the human body causes paralysis or numbness of the body due to the cold, making swimming movements to safety or grabbing rescue equipment such as life belts impossible. Furthermore, liquid is sucked into the interior of the glove and the rest of the body clothing of the user and collects, thereby heightening the downward driving movement in the direction towards the surface below the water—and hence the risk of drowning.

Accordingly, the objective of the present invention is to overcome the disadvantages described above in connection with items of clothing, in particular gloves, shoes or headwear, and to propose an item of clothing as well as a system by means of which reliability in preventing undesirable ingress by foreign substances, in particular penetration by water, to the clothing can be improved, whilst simultaneously ensuring that wearing comfort and freedom of movement for a user wearing this item of clothing are no worse.

This objective is achieved by the invention on the basis of the features wherein an item of clothing, comprising at least one material layer, and the at least one material layer is provided in the form of a sealing, in particular liquid or fluid-tight, functional layer, and having in particular a tubular shaft with an attachment, which attachment can be coupled with a specifically tubular connecting piece of another item of clothing to provide a sealed connection preventing foreign substances from penetrating to an interior, wherein the attachment is disposed on an external face or an internal face of the shaft and the attachment comprises a cuff extending along the shaft and a collar overlapping with it in at least certain regions in a closed position, and the cuff and collar are made from a material affording a seal, in particular a fluid-impermeable material, and the cuff and/or the collar is mounted on the shaft by means of at least one fixing element in such a way that the functional layer is not perforated.

The advantage gained as a result of these features primarily resides in the fact that, opting for a very simple construction of the attachment for another item of clothing, a transition region with an increased and more reliable sealing capacity is provided between two items of clothing. Due to the fact that the attachment of the glove for the other item of clothing is functionally separate from the lining and is formed by at least one material layer of the item of clothing, the respective elements can be designed exclusively for their intended purpose. This means that the at least one material layer of the lining can be very finely adapted to the anatomical aspects of users so that the comfort of the item of clothing when worn can be optimised, especially as regards the tactile properties. For example, a sealing functional layer may be designed so that it is very thin, preferably in the manner of a membrane, and flexible, because it is integrated in the layered structure of the glove and is optionally protected by the top layer and an internally lying lining layer. The collar and the cuff of the attachment can therefore be made to a design optimised for their intended purpose—coupling with another item of clothing—and the collar and the membrane may be made from a material that is particularly suitable for this purpose, without it being absolutely necessary to take account of the properties of the item of clothing needed for the lining, for example obtaining a sense of touch and feeling as well as freedom of movement. For example, it is not usually necessary to use a material that actively breathes or is sensitive for the collar and the cuff—by contrast with the material layers of the item of clothing—which means that conventional and proven sealing materials may be used for these elements, preferably elastomers such as rubber for example, by means of which a reliable seal of the connecting region can be assured and which enable use to be made of mechanical effects and forces, such as an active tension, for reinforcing the sealing region. The expedient design of the attachment therefore results in a better seal of the coupling region between two items of clothing on the one hand, and, because of the proven structure of the at least one material layer and the lining, the comfort and freedom of movement of the items of clothing are not restricted during wearing, on the other hand. Since the functional layer of the item of clothing in the region of the attachment is not perforated by its fixing means, a particularly inexpensive and compact structure of the item of clothing can be achieved because no additional sealing elements are needed to seal perforations.

Another independent solution to the objective addressed by the invention is achieved on the basis of the features wherein the item of clothing further comprises a glove, a shoe or headwear, and as a result of the special design of the collar disposed on the external face of the shaft lying in intimate contact with the top layer, the transition zone sealed against foreign substances between two items of clothing is of a compact and functional design during use of the items of clothing. In view of the fact that the collar can be positioned in two positions, the coupling operation is made simple and comfortable when the collar is in the released position on the one hand, and, on the other hand, a tight seal and reliable connection can be established between the two items of clothing in the closed position. In this respect, it is of particular advantage that the attachment is disposed on the external face or internal face of the glove, as a result of which the cuff is readily accessible for the operation of coupling with the other item of clothing and the collar can be easily moved.

Also of advantage is an embodiment wherein the cuff and/or the collar and/or the connecting piece are made from a stretchable and elastically rebounding material, for example a rubber blend, because the use of a stretchable and elastically reboundable material for the cuff and/or the collar of the first item of clothing and/or the connecting piece of the other item of clothing enables inner tensions to be created when the material is stretched accordingly, in which case the elements in the coupling region can be placed one above the other with a mechanical pre-tensioning. The radial forces acting between the cuff and the connecting piece and/or the collar and the connecting piece as a result strengthen the seat of the seal in the coupling region.

Embodiments wherein the functional layer extends underneath a top layer covering it, and the functional layer is of an integral design at least in the region of the attachment wherein the functional layer extending underneath the top layer is not perforated, at least in the region of the attachment, in particular is not stitched, are of advantage because a functional layer which is separate from the attachment may be intact or not perforated, which provides a reliable and inexpensive seal for the coupling region between the items of clothing without additional sealing elements.

An embodiment of the item of clothing wherein the functional layer lies between the top layer and an internally lying lining layer, which may be made from textile fabric layers, woven fabrics, knitted fabrics or similar, for example, are of advantage due to the practical proven structure known from the prior art.

The characterizing features defined wherein the cuff and/or the collar have a contact surface which bounds an attachment slot for a connecting piece of another item of clothing when the collar is in the closed position and wherein the material has adhering or anti-slip properties at least in the region of the contact surfaces on the cuff and/or are of advantage because a sealed, in particular liquid-proof contact closure can be established with the connecting piece of the other item of clothing.

The embodiment wherein the material of at least the region of the contact surfaces on the cuff and/or the collar is selected from the group comprising elastomeric plastics, in particular rubber, latex or caoutchouc materials is of advantage because adhering and slip-inhibiting contact surfaces can be produced with elastic material, in particular rubber materials, on the one hand, and the stretch and elastic rebound properties of elastomeric plastics can be used to build up a tension when the cuff and/or collar and/or connecting piece are stretched compared with an initial tension.

Another preferred embodiment is the item of clothing wherein the material on the cuff and/or the collar on which the contact surfaces extend has a coating applied to it that has adhering or anti-slip properties and, wherein one or more retaining element(s) is or are provided in the attachment slot between the cuff and the collar for example adhesive tapes, on which the contact surfaces are provided and wherein the contact surfaces are formed by a fibrous structure in particular, for example a micro-fiber structure wherein one or more mechanical coupling elements are provided on the attachment, for example catch, clip or push-in elements, which can be connected to a co-operating coupling element of the other item of clothing which respectively defines advantageous means for increasing the strength of the connection in the coupling region between the first and other item of clothing.

As a result of the features wherein the connecting piece is not coupled with the attachment, the collar extends along the shaft lying underneath in its longitudinal extension in the closed position and the contact surfaces lie on top of or above one another, and in the released position, the contact surface of the collar is at least partially lifted away or spaced apart from the contact surface of the cuff the other item of clothing together with the connecting element can advantageously be attached to the cuff with little effort when the collar is in the released position and a totally liquid-tight connection is assured by turning back the collar to the closed position in which the connecting piece is surrounded by the collar, in particular around its entire circumference.

The advantage of the features wherein the collar is folded back about a stationary or fixed portion in the released position, preferably a terminal end region of the collar, is that the collar can be switched in a simple and comfortable manner from the closed position into the released position and vice versa by a turning back or turning inside out operation, without having to provide separate adjusting mechanisms.

A particularly practical design of the cuff and collar, intended to provide a liquid-tight transition zone between the items of clothing in co-operation with the connecting piece orifice width of the cuff and/or the collar is dimensioned so that when items of clothing are worn by a user and when the connecting piece of the other item of clothing is coupled with the attachment the internal and/or external face of the connecting piece contracts to form a contact closure with the contact surface of the cuff and/or the contact surface of the collar in at least certain regions, which is essentially fluid-tight.

As a result of the features, wherein the collar is secured to the top layer at a terminal end region and the collar is not joined to the top layer or cuff lying underneath across the rest of its longitudinal extension, a collar with a short width may be used, which can be folded back but nevertheless affords a large contact surface. This enables a saving to be made on the collar material whilst the length of the collar contour on the shaft, i.e. the extension width of the coupling region, can be kept short, thereby resulting in barely any restriction to the comfort of the item of clothing when worn.

The cuff and the collar are joined on a common connecting line with the top layer, wherein the cuff and the collar are essentially of an identical collar length and this length is in the range of form 0.5 to 30 cm, in particular 2 to 20 cm, preferably 4 to 10 cm, for example, resulting in a particularly efficient production process and functional design of the item of clothing.

The features wherein the cuff and the collar are essentially of an identical collar length and this length is in the range of form 0.5 to 30 cm, in particular 2 to 20 cm, preferably 4 to 10 cm, for example, and wherein the material layer(s) lying under the collar extend beyond the end faces of the collar at both ends in the closed position result in an item of clothing that is particularly comfortable for the user to wear.

Also of advantage is another embodiment wherein a pulling element such as a rubber pull, for example, is provided on the collar and/or the connecting piece of another item of clothing, because the reliability and strength of the connection between the first and the other item of clothing can be further improved by means of an additional tension element.

The embodiments wherein the attachment for retaining the connecting piece of another item of clothing on a glove is disposed in the region of a wrist or on a shoe in the region of an ankle are of advantage because more intensive contact with liquid can occur in the region of the wrist and ankle and it is precisely in these regions that two adjacent items of clothing adjoin one another. The preferred embodiments of the first item of clothing therefore relate to gloves or shoes which can be coupled with the other item of clothing in the form of a sleeve or trouser leg.

The objective of the invention is also independently achieved whereby a system of this type enables a compact and simple design of the coupling region between the two items of clothing to be obtained, whilst nevertheless reliably preventing penetration by foreign substances. Other advantages of the system provide a sealed connection for two items of clothing which can be worn on a body and worn adjacent to one another, for example a glove and sleeve or shoe and trouser leg, etc., whereby the first item of clothing has a shaft with an attachment which can be coupled in particular with a tubular connecting piece of the other item of clothing so as to prevent penetration by foreign substances, wherein the attachment is formed by a cuff lying on an external face or an internal face of the first item of clothing and a collar covering at least certain regions of it in a closed position, and the connecting piece and/or the cuff and/or the collar is or are made from a stretchable and elastically rebounding material, and an orifice width of the connecting piece and the cuff and/or the collar is dimensioned so that the connecting piece lies against the cuff and/or the collar with a tension force acting on the connecting piece.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The invention will be described in more detail below with reference to examples of embodiments illustrated in the appended drawings.

Of these:

FIG. 1 is a schematic plan view of one possible embodiment of an item of clothing proposed by the invention in the form of a glove;

FIG. 2 is a view from an angle showing the glove illustrated in FIG. 1 with an attachment for another item of clothing in the form of a sleeve in an initial position;

FIG. 3 shows the attachment of the glove illustrated in FIG. 1 with an attachment in the released position and an item of clothing disposed on the attachment;

FIG. 4 shows the attachment of the glove illustrated in FIG. 1 with an item of clothing coupled with the attachment and a collar in the closed position.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Firstly, it should be pointed out that the same parts described in the different embodiments are denoted by the same reference numbers and the same component names and the disclosures made throughout the description can be transposed in terms of meaning to same parts bearing the same reference numbers or same component names. Furthermore, the positions chosen for the purposes of the description, such as top, bottom, side, etc., relate to the drawing specifically being described and can be transposed in terms of meaning to a new position when another position is being described. Individual features or combinations of features from the different embodiments illustrated and described may be construed as independent inventive solutions or solutions proposed by the invention in their own right.

FIG. 1 illustrates one possible embodiment of an item of clothing 1 proposed by the invention, comprising one or more layers of material. The item of clothing 1 in this instance is a glove 2 which can be coupled with another item of clothing 3 in the form of a sleeve.

The item of clothing 1 proposed by the invention is not restricted to the embodiment of a glove 2 as illustrated in the drawings and the item of clothing 1 may also be any item of clothing surrounding a body part of a user directly adjacent to or adjoining another item of clothing 3. Preferred embodiments of the item of clothing 1 proposed by the invention are primarily based on hand and footwear, with which adjacent leg or arm clothing can be coupled, or headwear, such as helmets or caps which can be coupled with chest or upper body clothing.

In principle, the item of clothing 1 or clothing system proposed by the invention is designed to ensure that a body part of a user is reliably prevented from coming into contact with a foreign substance acting from the outside, in particular water. This is achieved by means of the sealed structure of the lining of the item of clothing 1 and by means of a sealed transition zone between two connected items of clothing 1, 3.

The item of clothing 1 comprises one or more material layer(s) 4 forming a lining, which surround an interior 5 for accommodating a body part of a user, and at least one of these material layers 4 is formed by a functional layer 6 affording a seal. The purpose of the functional layer 6 is to prevent penetration through the item of clothing 1 by a foreign substance acting on or in contact from outside to the interior 5 surrounded by the item of clothing 1; 3.

The functional layer 6 affording a seal is preferably of an at least liquid repellent or fluid-tight, in particular waterproof material, so that a foreign substance in the form of a liquid is not able to penetrate the material layer (s) 4 and hence the clothing interior. The functional layer 6 affording a seal may also be impermeable or partially permeable to other types of foreign substances or media, in which case a seal and protection may be, provided with respect to chemically basic or acidic substances, micro-particles, gases, odour particles etc., for example. In particular, the functional layer 6 may be provided in the form of a microporous layer, which may optionally be semi-permeable. The functional layer 6 is preferably provided in the form of a semi-permeable membrane 7, which is impermeable to water and permeable to water vapour, i.e. actively breathes.

The functional layer 6 may also be made from any other type of materials affording a type of seal specifically adapted to the intended application and/or as a composite element in conjunction with other layers of the item of clothing 1, for example made from textile, leather or polymer material, or may be provided as a facing on another material layer 4.

Another of the material layers 4 is provided in the form of a top layer 8 covering the functional layer 6. The top layer 8 forms the outermost region of the item of clothing 1 and has an external face 9 in contact with the outside environment. The top layer 8 may be provided in the form of one or more blanks 10 which may be joined to one another by means of connecting elements 11, for example a welded or stitched seam. This being the case, the blanks 10 may be made from the same or different materials and in particular may be selected from textile fabrics, leather material, flexible plastics, etc., and may be rendered hydrophobic, for example, using treatment processes known from the prior art. The illustrated glove 2 essentially comprises a top hand part, a palm part and finger parts lying in between the fingers and stitched to one another.

The blanks 10 of the top layer 8 may individually at least have gas permeable and/or fluid permeable properties so that gas can be transmitted between the interior 5 and the outside environment. The item of clothing 1 may be designed so that it actively breathes by using the semi-permeable membrane 7 and air or water-permeable materials for the top layer 8 and may help to combat transpiration in the glove interior.

The glove 2 illustrated in FIG. 1 is essentially designed with a water-permeable and air-permeable material in the region of a back of the hand 12, which is stitched via the connecting elements 11 to a material made from leather, in particular natural leather, extending in the region of the palm.

A lining layer 14 may also be disposed underneath the functional layer 6, formed by a textile surface pattern, such as a woven fabric or a knitted fabric, for example. Accordingly, the lining layer 14 has heat-insulating properties so that the exchange of heat between the outside environment and the interior 5 is kept as low as possible. The material from which the lining layer 14 is made may have properties similar to those described in respect of the top layer 8 and in particular is permeable to water and/or air.

The top layer 8 and/or the lining layer 14 are each made up of one or more layers, in which case these layers may be formed by different types of fabric, woven or knitted materials and produced by different joining or processing methods.

In the case of the embodiment illustrated as an example in FIG. 1, the functional layer 6, top layer 8 and lining layer 14 each comprise one layer only, each of a slim thickness, in particular in the range of a few millimetres. This results in a glove which is light and pleasant to wear, whereby the user's sense of touch or feel is largely unimpaired, thereby resulting in a perfectly tactile glove 2.

In use, the item of clothing 1 has an essentially cylindrical but flexible or deformable shaft 15 with an attachment 16 which can be coupled with a connecting piece 17 of the other item of clothing 3 terminating in a connection which is sealed to prevent penetration to the interior 5 of the items of clothing 1, 3 by foreign substances. The connecting piece 17, which is tubular in particular, may be made as a single piece from the same material as the other regions of the other item of clothing 3 or as a separate, cuff-type element which is connected to the rest of the item of clothing 3 by connecting means.

The attachment 16 has a cuff 18 extending along the shaft 15 and enclosing it in an annular arrangement and a collar 19 which surrounds at least some parts of the cuff 18 in a closed position. The cuff 18 and the collar 19 are provided in the form of a hollow cylinder or a tube, the longitudinal extension of which runs essentially parallel with a longitudinal extension of the shaft 15. The cuff 18 and/or the collar 19 and/or the connecting piece 17 may be provided in the form of a film or thin film and are preferably deformable.

The cuff 18 and the collar 19 are made from a material which affords a seal, in particular is waterproof. The cuff 18 and the collar 19 are joined to the top layer 8 at least in a connecting region 20 by means of a fixing element 21, for example a seam or a bonded or welded connection.

In the embodiment illustrated as an example representing an independent solution proposed by the invention, the functional layer 6 is not part of the attachment 16 formed by the collar 19 and cuff 18 and instead, the functional layer 6 extends into the lining of the item of clothing 1, in particular as a separate material layer 4 underneath the top layer 8 and independent of the attachment 16.

To this end, the functional layer 6 may extend integrally and/or uninterrupted underneath the top layer 8, at least in a coupling region 22 of the glove 2 in which the attachment 16 is disposed. The collar 19 is mounted on the shaft 15 by means of at least one fixing element 21 so that the functional layer 6 is not perforated by the fixing element 21. In particular, the functional layer 6 is not stitched to other components of the item of clothing 1 in the region of the fixing element 21, in particular the cuff 18 or collar 19, and is therefore not perforated. In the embodiment illustrated as an example, the collar 19 and cuff 18 are secured exclusively to the top layer 8 by means of a stitched seam.

In the region lying behind the fixing element 21 in the direction of an opening for putting the glove 2 on, the functional layer 6 may be joined to one of the material layers 4 by fixing means of any type, and a sealing element may also be provided, for example a bonded or welded point, by means of which a sealed join is produced between the functional layer 4 and the cuff 18.

The connecting piece 17 of the other item of clothing 3 is sealed by the attachment 16 and is releasably retained on the shaft 15. To this end, the attachment 16 comprising the cuff 18 and shaft 19 is disposed on the external face 23 or an internal face of the lining or at least one material layer 4 or a layered structure at least in the region of the shaft 15 of the first item of clothing 1 and the connecting piece 17 of the other item of clothing 3 is preferably provided in the form of a tubular or hollow cylindrical terminal end region 24 with an orifice 25. The connecting piece 17 of the other item of clothing 3 is pulled over the external face 9 onto the shaft 15 in order to couple it with or connect it to the attachment 16 so that the shaft 15 is enclosed by the tubular connecting piece 17. Accordingly, the shaft 15 of the first item of clothing 1 extends across an overlap length in an interior 26 of the other item of clothing 3. When the items of clothing 1, 3 are coupled, the external face 9 of the shaft 15 is surrounded by an internal face 28 of the connecting piece 17 and the connecting piece 17 is accommodated on the internal face 28 and an external face 29 by means of the cuff 18 and the collar 19 of the attachment 16 on both sides.

The cuff 18 and the collar 19 have contact surfaces 30, 31, which can be moved to lie directly on the internal face 28 and the external face 29 of the connecting piece 17, so that the connecting piece 17 is held on the attachment 16 by the action of a retaining force.

When the collar 19 is in a closed position, the contact surfaces 30, 31 lie in a mutually facing arrangement one on top of the other in at least certain regions, and when the collar 19 is in the closed position, the contact surfaces 30, 31 bound an attachment slot 32 for the connecting piece 17 of the other item of clothing 3.

The shaft 15 essentially extends from an end face 34 of a terminal end region 35 of the item of clothing 1 across a shaft length 36. In the embodiment illustrated as an example, the shaft length 36 extends between the end face 34 with a slip-on opening 37, through which the hand of a user can be inserted in a pulling on or pulling off direction 38, and adjoins a wrist region 39 which is adjoined by a hand and finger region 40 of the glove 2.

The collar 19 can be positioned in at least two positions, of which a first closed position of the collar 19 is illustrated by solid lines in FIG. 1. In the closed position, the contact surfaces 30, 31 of the collar 19 and the cuff 18 lying underneath lie facing one another and abutting with one another. In a released position illustrated by broken lines, the contact surface 31 of the collar 19 is at least partially lifted off or moved to a distance away from the contact surface 30 of the cuff 18 so that the connecting piece 17 can be positioned on the freely lying contact surface 30 of the cuff 18. In the embodiment illustrated as an example, the collar 19 is switched between the released and closed position by folding back or turning back the collar 19 about a stationary or fixed region, in particular a terminal end region 41 of the collar 19. A broken line indicates an intermediate position assumed during the stepless folding back operation.

-   -   FIGS. 2 to 4 illustrate how the items of clothing 1, 3 are         coupled.     -   FIG. 2 illustrates the initial position of the attachment 16, in         which the collar 19 is in the closed position and the cuff 18         lies underneath the collar 19.

In FIG. 3, the collar 19 is in the released position, in which the contact surface 30 of the cuff 18 which is covered in the closed position is exposed and accessible from outside. The collar 19 is moved from the closed position into the released position by folding it back around the stationary or fixed portion of the collar 19, in particular by folding it back round the terminal end region 41 of the collar 19. As may be see from FIG. 1, the collar 19 is lifted in the direction of an arrow 42 from a position extending parallel with the shaft 15 and folded back around an axis by applying an appropriate displacement and turning force so that the contact surface 31 facing inwards in the closed position is turned outwards and the contact surface 30 of the cuff 18 is at least partially exposed.

The connecting piece 17 can then be pulled onto the shaft 15 and positioned with the internal face 28 on the externally lying retaining surface 30 of the cuff 18—as illustrated in FIG. 3—resulting in a contact closure between the retaining surface 31 and the internal face 28 at least in certain regions.

As illustrated in FIG. 4, the collar 19 disposed in the released position is moved back into the closed position so that the retaining surface 31 of the collar 19 lies against the external face 29 of the connecting tube 17.

Other design variants of the attachment 16 are naturally possible, whereby the collar 19 does not have to be fully turned back into a released position but can be moved in some other way, either steplessly or in one or more steps. For example, the collar 19 may of a cuff-type design or ring-shaped and slide parallel along the shaft length 36 or it may be that a diameter 43 or orifice width of the collar 19 can be widened and made narrow along at least a part of a length 44 of the collar as and when necessary.

In the embodiment illustrated as an example, the cuff 18 and/or the collar 19, at least in the deformable folding over region, and/or the tubular connecting piece 17 of the other item of clothing 3 are made from a material that is flexibly deformable and rebounds to its initial position. The material used may be selected from the group comprising elastomers, i.e. it may be of a stretching and elastically rebounding type. In particular, the materials used may be selected from the group comprising thermoplastic or elastomeric plastics, in particular rubber, caoutchouc or latex materials.

The material on the cuff 18 and/or the collar 19 and/or the connecting piece 17 may also have adhering or slip-inhibiting properties, at least in the region of the contact surfaces 30, 31.

The cuff 18 may be made from a similar or identical material to that of the collar 19 but variants of the cuff 18 are also possible in which the cuff 18 is not deformable or is of a rigid design. In principle, the cuff 18 may be provided as a separate part secured to the external face 23 of the top layer 8 and extend essentially parallel across the shaft 15 surrounding the top layer 8. However, another option would be for the cuff 18 to be integrated in the lining of the item of clothing 1 or in the at least one material layer 4, in particular the top layer 8, in which case the cuff 18 constitutes the shaft 15 across its length and the external face 23 of the material layer 4 constitutes the contact surface 30.

In a preferred embodiment, the internal face 28 of the connecting piece 17 sits on the cylindrical contact surface 30 under tension and the internal face 28 at the contact surface 30 contracts to produce a gap-free contact closure around the entire circumference of the cuff 18. In terms of its orifice width, the collar 19 is dimensioned so that its contact surface 30 is in direct contact with the external face 29 of the connecting piece 17 in the closed position and with the connecting piece 17 disposed on the cuff 18. Due to the contact closure between the contact surface 30 of the cuff 18 and the internal face 28 of the connecting piece 17 and/or the contact surface 31 of the collar 19 and the external face 29 of the connecting piece 17, a foreign substance can be prevented from penetrating the interiors 5, 26 of the items of clothing 1, 3 via the attachment 16 depending on a degree of sealing which can be specifically defined as a function of the strength of the contact closure between the surfaces.

The material of the contact surfaces 30, 31 of the collar 19 and/or cuff 18 in conjunction with the material of the external face 29 and internal face 28 of the connecting tube 17 constitute a pair of materials which adhere firmly to one another and can not be easily pulled apart by tensile forces. The mathematical product of the normal force acting on the contact surfaces 30, 31 and internal face 28 and external face 29 and the coefficients of static friction of the material pairs used between the cuff 18 and collar 19 as well as the boundary friction force produced by the connecting tube 17, from where a sliding friction occurs between the material pairs, should therefore be as high as possible. A sufficiently firm connection via the attachment 16 with a correspondingly high boundary friction force is achieved by the invention due to the fact that the normal force acting on the surfaces 30, 31 respectively 28, 29 is generated by using stretched or pre-tensioned and elastically rebounding materials for the collar 19 and connecting tube 17 and/or materials with adhering and anti-slip properties, i.e. high coefficients of static friction.

The material on the cuff 18 and collar 19 along which the contact surfaces 30, 31 extend may therefore have a coating with appropriate adhering or anti-slip properties applied to it. Another option is for one or more retaining elements to be provided in the attachment slot 32, for example adhesive tape or similar, on which the contact surfaces 30, 31 are provided. Furthermore, the contact surfaces 30, 31 may have a fibrous structure, for example a micro-fibre structure. The contact surfaces 30, 31 may also be roughened, perforated or contoured, for example with a raised knob pattern, in order to strengthen the contact closure of the surfaces.

The attachment 16 may also have one or more mechanical coupling elements which can be connected to co-operating coupling elements of the other item of clothing. The coupling elements may be provided in the form of catch, clinging, clip or push-in elements, for example. The connection between the items of clothing 1 and 3 can be further strengthened in the coupling region 22 by such coupling elements, in particular preventing the tubular connecting piece 17 from being pulled out of the attachment 16 in particular.

The cuff 18 and collar 19 may be connected in the connecting region 20 by means of the fixing element 21 in an essentially common connecting line 45 with the top layer 8, and a stitched seam, bonded or welded seam or similar may be provided in the region of this connecting line 45. The connecting line 45 preferably extends in a circular or elliptical shape around the cuff 18 and collar 19, which are cylindrical or have an elliptical shape in cross-section, at the terminal end region 41.

A cuff length 46 of the cuff 18 lying around the collar 19 may essentially be of the same or a similar dimension as the collar length 44. Between the contact surfaces 30, 31 and the external face 28 and/or internal face 29, a contact closure is created between the cuff 18 and collar 19 and the connecting piece 17 so that the dimension of the cuff length 46 and collar length 44 must be taken into account when determining the sealing capacity in the coupling region 22 and the strength of the connection between the attachment 16 and the connecting piece 17. Embodiments of the cuff 18 and collar 19 with a length 46 in the range of from 0.5 to 30 cm, preferably 2 to 20 cm, in particular 5 to 10 cm, have proved to be of advantage.

The material layers 4 lying underneath the collar 19 may extend round the oppositely lying end faces of the collar 19 at both ends. These material layers, in particular the top layer 8 and/or lining layer 14 and/or functional layer 6, may extend in a tubular arrangement around a dimension 49, and in the embodiment illustrated as an example in FIG. 1, the shaft 15 of the glove 2 extends in the region of the lower arm and the attachment 16 is therefore disposed in the wrist region 39. This results in a glove 2 which is comfortable for the user to wear.

The cuff 18 and collar 19 may be anatomically adapted to the body part of a user which they surround so that they lie tightly surrounding the body. As may be seen from the description given above and the drawings, the collar 19 and cuff 18 are preferably formed by two tubes lying one around the other and, in the case of the glove 2 illustrated, the wrist region 39 surrounds a wrist of the user in an annular arrangement and the position of the collar 19 can be varied across at least a part region and can be switched to a released position. This results in a compact and inexpensive structure for the item of clothing 1 whilst nevertheless assuring a reliable seal against fluids in the coupling region 22.

Ring-shaped pulling elements may naturally be provided on the collar 19 and/or on the connecting piece 17 of the other item of clothing, for example in the form of a rubber pull, by means of which the hold of the connection between the connecting piece 17 and the attachment 16 can be additionally strengthened.

The embodiments illustrated as examples represent possible design variants of the item of clothing 1 and it should be pointed out at this stage that the invention is not specifically limited to the design variants specifically illustrated, and instead the individual design variants may be used in different combinations with one another and these possible variations lie within the reach of the person skilled in this technical field given the disclosed technical teaching. Accordingly, all conceivable design variants which can be obtained by combining individual details of the design variants described and illustrated are possible and fall within the scope of the invention.

For the sake of good order, finally, it should be pointed out that, in order to provide a clearer understanding of the structure of the part-feeding system, it and its constituent parts are illustrated to a certain extent out of scale and/or on an enlarged scale and/or on a reduced scale.

The objective underlying the independent inventive solutions may be found in the description.

Above all, the individual embodiments of the subject matter illustrated in FIGS. 1, 2, 3, 4 constitute independent solutions proposed by the invention in their own right. The objectives and associated solutions proposed by the invention may be found in the detailed descriptions of these drawings.

LIST OF REFERENCE NUMBERS

-   1 First item of clothing -   2 Glove -   3 Other item of clothing -   4 Material layer -   5 Interior -   6 Functional layer -   7 Membrane -   8 Top layer -   9 External face -   10 Blank -   11 Connecting element -   12 Back of the hand -   13 Palm of the hand -   14 Lining layer -   15 Shaft -   16 Attachment -   17 Connecting piece -   18 Cuff -   19 Collar -   20 Connecting region -   21 Fixing element -   22 Coupling region -   23 External face -   24 End region -   25 Orifice -   26 Interior -   27 Orifice width -   28 Internal face -   29 External face -   30 Contact surface -   31 Contact surface -   32 Attachment slot -   33 -   34 End face -   35 Terminal end region -   36 Shaft length -   37 Slip-on opening -   38 Pulling on or off direction -   39 Wrist region -   40 Hand and finger region -   41 Terminal end region -   42 Arrow -   43 Diameter -   44 Collar length -   45 Connecting line -   46 Cuff length -   47 End face -   48 End face -   49 Dimension 

1. An item of clothing, comprising at least one material layer, and the at least one material layer is provided in the form of a sealing, in particular liquid or fluid-tight, frictional layer, and having in particular a tubular shat with an attachment, which attachment can be coupled with a specifically tubular connecting piece of another item of clothing to provide a sealed connection preventing foreign substances from penetrating to an interior, wherein the attachment is disposed on an external face or an internal face of the shaft and the attachment comprises a cuff extending along the shaft and a collar overlapping with it in at least certain regions in a closed position, and the cuff and collar are made from a material affording a seal, in particular a fluid-impermeable material, and the cuff and/or the collar is mounted on the shaft by means of at least one fixing element in such a way that the functional layer is not perforated.
 2. The item of clothing wherein in a closed position the collar extends in intimate contact along the cuff or along the connecting piece disposed around the cuff and when the collar is in a released position at least a part-portion of the cuff or the connecting piece that was covered in the connected position is released and render accessible.
 3. The item of clothing as claimed in claim 1, further comprising a glove, a shoe or headwear.
 4. The item of clothing as claimed in claim 1, wherein the cuff and/or the collar and/or the connecting piece are made from a stretchable and elastically rebounding material, for example a rubber blend.
 5. The item of clothing as claimed in claim 1, wherein the functional layer extends underneath a top layer covering it, and the functional layer is of an integral design at least in the region of the attachment.
 6. The item of clothing as claimed in claim 1, wherein the frictional layer extending underneath the top layer is not perforated, at least in the region of the attachment, in particular is not stitched.
 7. The item of clothing as claimed in claim 1, wherein the functional layer lies between the top layer and an internally lying lining layer, which may be made from textile fabric layers, woven fabrics, knitted fabrics or similar, for example.
 8. The item of clothing as claimed in claim 1, wherein the cuff and/or the collar have a contact surface which bounds an attachment slot for a connecting piece of another item of clothing when the collar is in the closed position.
 9. The item of clothing as claimed in claim 7, wherein the material has adhering or anti-slip properties at least in the region of the contact surfaces on the cuff and/or the collar.
 10. The item of clothing as claimed in claim 7, wherein the material of at least the region of the contact surfaces on the cuff and/or the collar is selected from the group comprising elastomeric plastics, in particular rubber, latex or caoutchouc materials.
 11. The item of clothing as claimed in claim 7, wherein the material on the cuff and/or the collar on which the contact surfaces extend has a coating applied to it that has adhering or anti-slip properties.
 12. The item of clothing as claimed in claim 7, wherein one or more retaining element(s) is or are provided in the attachment slot between the cuff and the collar for example adhesive tapes, on which the contact surfaces are provided.
 13. The item of clothing as claimed in claim 7, wherein the contact surfaces are formed by a fibrous structure in particular, for example a micro-fibre structure.
 14. The item of clothing as claimed in claim 7, wherein one or more mechanical coupling elements are provided on the attachment, for example catch, clip or push-in elements, which can be connected to a co-operating coupling element of the other item of clothing.
 15. The item of clothing as claimed in claim 7, wherein when the connecting piece is not coupled with the attachment, the collar extends along the shaft lying underneath in its longitudinal extension in the closed position and the contact surfaces lie on top of or above one another, and in the released position, the contact surface of the collar is at least partially lifted away or spaced apart from the contact surface of the cuff.
 16. The item of clothing as claimed in claim 7, wherein the collar is folded back about a stationary or fixed portion in the released position, preferably a terminal end region of the collar.
 17. The item of clothing as claimed in claim 7, wherein the orifice width of the cuff and/or the collar is dimensioned so that when items of clothing are worn by a user and when the connecting piece of the other item of clothing is coupled with the attachment the internal and/or external face of the connecting piece contracts to form a contact closure with the contact surface of the cuff and/or the contact surface of the collar in at least certain regions, which is essentially fluid-tight.
 18. The item of clothing as claimed in claim 7, wherein the collar is secured to the top layer at a terminal end region and the collar is not joined to the top layer or cuff lying underneath across the rest of its longitudinal extension.
 19. The item of clothing as claimed in claim 7, wherein the cuff and the collar are joined on a common connecting line with the top layer.
 20. The item of clothing as claimed in claim 7, wherein the cuff and the collar are essentially of an identical collar length and this length is in the range of form 0.5 to 30 cm, in particular 2 to 20 cm, preferably 4 to 10 cm, for example.
 21. The item of clothing as claimed in claim 7, wherein the material layer(s) lying under the collar extend beyond the end faces of the collar at both ends in the closed position.
 22. The item of clothing as claimed in claim 7, wherein the cuff and the collar are anatomically adapted to a body part which they surround so that they sit in intimate contact with the body part they surround.
 23. The item of clothing as claimed in claim 7, wherein a pulling element such as a rubber pull, for example, is provided on the collar and/or the connecting piece of another item of clothing.
 24. The item of clothing as claimed in claim 7, wherein the attachment for retaining the connecting piece of another item of clothing on a glove is disposed in the region of a wrist or on a shoe in the region of an ankle.
 25. A system for providing a sealed connection for two items of clothing which can be worn on a body and worn adjacent to one another, for example a glove and sleeve or shoe and trouser leg, etc., whereby the first item of clothing has a shaft with an attachment which can be coupled in particular with a tubular connecting piece of the other item of clothing so as to prevent penetration by foreign substances, wherein the attachment is formed by a cuff lying on an external face or an internal face of the first item of clothing and a collar covering at least certain regions of it in a closed position, and the connecting piece and/or the cuff and/or the collar is or are made from a stretchable and elastically rebounding material, and an orifice width of the connecting piece and the cuff and or the collar is dimensioned so that the connecting piece lies against the cuff and/or the collar with a tension force acting on the connecting piece. 